Scion xB Engine Problems

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there is actually an issue with the oil and the engine and if you have it under your warrenty i would advise to get this taken care of right away as it can be extremely expensive to fix!!!! i get mines in the shop tomorrow and will be almost five days to correct.

I just recently finished paying off my 2009 scion xb and it has 58,860 miles. I still have warranty until I hit the 60,000 miles. But ever since, my car has been having problems idling. I took it the Toyota dealership to have the ignition coils replaced since their was a recall on them. My car still shaked when idling I changed the spark plugs the spark plugs were worn out too. It still shakes. A Retired Toyota mechanic told me that it could be my throttle body cause it might have a bunch of gunk in there due to the carbon. He's checking it on Wednesday. But I've been looking for forums(oil consumption)on line that describes the same problem as my car. I found you guys. Last time I changed the oil on my car, the car had a little bit of oil. And Ive never had that problem with my cars that I have owned. I believe my car is consuming oil because I couldn't believe how much dropped on the oil pan. I think my car has that problem. It never occurred to me to check the oil on my car when I changed the spark plugs. Another thing is that my cars oil icon has not mention that I need oil on the car. Back to my car shaking. My car only has thins problem when I'm at a stop sign or I'm just idling. My scion shakes but then it goes away. It doesn't shake all the time I'm at the stop sign. It shakes for a bit and them it goes away. If reversing it shakes too. I don't know how much more money I can spend on this car. Reading all the forums you guys have makes me just want to sell it to Carmax and getting myself more than 12,000 for my car and let them deal with it. Someone please give me advice on what else it could be. Thank you very much. Sorry I wrote a lot but hopefully other people can relate to it as well.

Matt, thank you. My 2008 xb has had no problems until now (except brake pads wear way too quick--dealer says it's because I drive in city as a courier, former job).I take my car in for oil changes regularly, but admittedly I often go beyond 3000, to 4000, sometimes even 5, or 6000; but the treatment I've given re mileage btwn oil changes, and general attention to the slightest detail of the cars performance, has been the most dillagent of any of the many cars I've owned. But, if anyone at the dealer had said one word about it consuming oil, I would have checked the oil all the time, or often and avoided this (engine is toast! and I LOVE my car!) problem. They stress--in fact my best friend is the service mangr--my tardiness in mileage between oil changes, but never told me that I was ever low when I brought it in--I have checked the oil only once or twice in its 113,000 miles! This is NOT because i am an idiot that has no idea of how cars work. On the contrary--as I have never had a new car, I thought that if I kept bringing it in as close to the oil change times as I could, which again, is by far the most oil changes of any car I've owned, the dealer would tell me/advise me if anything needed watching with my car--OR AT LEAST TELL ME MY OIL IS LOW WHEN I BRING IT IN CONSISTENTLY AND THIS CAR CONSUMES OIL ANYWAY!! Sorry, anyway, that is my long winded way of signing on with you in this. This car was is the most important purchase I ever had, and I am devastated to say the least. PLEASE HELP!! And again, THANK YOU!! Tony Beers, Wash DC

Toyota sold it to you, they're through with it. There is no longer any customer service, everyone is on there own. The companies have observed the way people are treated by the Government and followed suit.If you plan to continue to own an automobile you will have to educate yourself.Excuses only work for Politicians.

My car does the exact same thing!!! (2008 Scion XB) 99,000 miles. The shaking just started a few months ago.....had the ignition coil fix....back when that was recalled and just recently had the throttle body cleaned out.....still shakes ....but like you said not all the time... very weird! I discovered the oil burning problem at about 70,000miles.....Oil light did come on! Car had almost no oil! And this was 2,000 miles before my next 5,000 mile oil change was due! I have always changed my oil religiously! I never would have imagined when I bought a brand new car that I would have to check the oil once a week! I love my car...but this experience has soured me against Toyota and I would never buy another one! This was my second ...I had a Toyota Corolla ..it had 230,000 on it and was still running! I see your post was from July ...let me know if you had any new developments with your situation. I called Scion headquarters about this back when i discovered these cars burn oil...and they ran some tests ...but they say it is within the normal range to burn a quart every 1,500 miles ...which is absurd!!! I did see it mentions the oil consumption in the manual but they should verbally warn you when you buy this car to check your oil regularly......I cant imagine how many people have blown there engines already ! I just hope mine makes it ! I have 2 more years of payments! Shame on Toyota.....Everyone with this problem should come forward...if enough people did maybe they would do something!!!!! Dawn

I posted about week ago re my 08 Scion XB (112,500 miles) and wish to pursue this issue for SO MANY reasons, the most important of which is the fact that I can't -- financially -- go out and replace this car!!! I know that I will have to try and borrow some money to get a car while fighting this, but fight I will!!! PLEASE, if anyone can assist in a mutual effort to out Toyota and get compensated for this ridiculous oil issue, please weigh in!! Thanks, Tony.

PS: My dealership told me that my engine at only 112,500 is toast for these reasons:

1) I wrecked the car -- even though I totally repaired the body, engine was not damaged at all and given a clean bill of health after accident -- and,

2) I did not keep up with oil changes every 3,000 miles (usually between 3,000--7,000, more than any car I've ever owned -- and as I said in my previous post, I have never expected my car engine to last as long as someone that keeps to that schedule -- or my neighbor who probably sleeps w/his car -- resulting in my car lasting only 240,000 before a rebuild while the other guy's car goes 280,000).

These reasons are preposterous as anyone that has even a cursory understanding of how automobiles work knows!!!! And to make the customer wrong/at fault while standing in the dealership looking at his dead Scion to which that same customer gave $19,600 of hard earned money, is also preposterous!!!!

It is completely preposterous and unacceptable! I have been waiting for more people to start coming forward with this in the hopes that maybe there would be a recall. Back a little before 70,000 miles they had been testing and measuring my oil but they say that the consumption was within normal range 1 quart per 1200 miles Which I still believe to be ridiculous. It does state in the owners manual that these cars will consume oil! I never read that until later I really feel it is Toyota's responsibility to let the customer know that with these cars you will need to check your oil! No one would think that they would need to check the oil that regularly if they got regular oil changes like myself I get oil changes every 3000 to 5000 miles religiously. When I first noticed that my car had consumed almost all of its oil It was over 2000 miles before I was even due for my next oil change! My car is just almost got 100,000 miles. When I read your post I became very worried and I called the scion headquarters I already have a case with them but it's kind of been closed cause that was over year ago and now they are telling me that my car is so far out of warranty that they really wouldn't do anything if anything happened to my car I told them about your case and I said that I was very worried that the same thing was going to happen to me eventually! Since the problem seems to be with the 2008 mainly and since I put a lot of miles on and obviously so do you I think more more people will be coming out with this problem so it may just take a while but I plan on keeping on top of them about this! I also want to find out why they would even sell a car like this without informing the customer of the oil burning problem the whole thing is preposterous and I am completely infuriated and will do whatever it takes to fight them. Could you tell me a little more about your situation ?how did you first notice that your engine was blown what was your car doing leading up to that? Had you been checking the oil? Did you realize that It had the oil burning problem? At any point with your dipstick completely dry? My dealership only recommends getting the oil changed every 5000 miles every time I get my oil changed the sticker for the next time is 5000 miles away I usually take it upon myself to take it in around 3000 miles just because I worried because I know it has this problem. But my friend told me that is silly I should go at 5000 because since I have to add so Much oil of my Own by the time I get there by car is practically filled with fresh oil again so I probably could at least wait till the 5000.

lisis, thank you for your comments. My car never had a symptom until I heard a tapping when I would let off the accelerator. This was hard to hear at first but was persisitantly there, so I called my friend at the dealership and arranged to bring it in (I drove while actually hearing the issue for 2days tops) I have, until now hardly ever checked the oil because i thought that I was bringing it often enough for a NEWER CAR--usually late, sometimes 5-8000 miles btwn changes--but since I never had the luxury of having a new car, I thought It was reasonable to not need to check oil unless dealer told me I was low or it was older and burning it/leaking it like many of my past older cars.Do you know that this is only 08 issue or what? I want to buy new engine or a used XB (love to buy a new one/lease it but not sure if i can afford a payment now) Am I crazy to buy another one? I love my poor car!! This issue is very painful and worse because my best friend is the service manager of the dealership where I bought my 08 new! Well I guess you read my last post, won't bore u....thx, tony

I sympathize with you and I also agree that one wouldn't expect to have to check the oil when you buy a brand-new car. But it does stay in the owners manual That these cars will burn oil but not everybody reads their owners manual ...I know I didn't until later. I get my oil changed every 3 to 5000 miles religiously I always have.But the thing that bothered me about your case is why didn't who ever changed your oil ever mention to you that it was extremely low... which it must have been at some point. It actually must've been almost empty at some point for your Engine to get that bad. Did you get it changed at the dealership? No offense but I do think it is crazy that you would buy another one. I love my car too it is a great car at a small car price with the space of an SUV, plus it is adorable. Not only would I not buy another scion XB I would not buy by another Toyota product period After this experience! Shame on Toyota for selling a car with these issues and not warning the customer when they buy it that they better check they're oil every week! I don't know who you complained too exactly so far but be sure to call the main Scion headquarters about this. I really feel if more people keep coming forward with this problem in this model of car maybe eventually they will recall it for an engine problem. Good luck to you. Dawn

I'm the original owner of an 08 xB. It now has over 70k miles, and I just noticed it too is burning oil. The other night, I noticed the oil warning light blinking when I braked. I stopped to check the oil level and saw the dipstick was dry. I added one quart of oil and the level seemed okay. I got the oil changed the next day (it was due since it was 5k miles since the last one). I will monitor my oil level weekly from now on.

I also started noticing a strong exhaust smell coming my floor heater vents when I use the heater in the winter about a year ago when the car had about 55k or so miles on it. There would be no smell when I switched to dash vent or defroster, but the smell would be very noticeable when I run the floor vents. And it would be much worse at the higher temperature setting on the thermostat. If I run cool air it wouldn't be as bad.

I am wondering if these two symptoms are linked? Could I have some kind of valve cover gasket leak or something or is it much worse?

Dave, that is exactly how it started for me I don't know if you saw any of my previous posts . At about 70,000 miles oil light flickered and then I noticed there was no oil on the dipstick! Please call your Scion headquarters to complain about this problem the more people to come forward the more likely that maybe they will actually do something about it! It's ridiculous that these cars would burn oil like this. As far as your other problem I haven't really noticed that But right now my heater makes A loud sound like something is wrong with the blower when I turn the heat up high once in a while I do notice a gas smell though but I'm not sure if that's related to that at all. They say they won't do anything about that Oil burning problem because it's within the normal range which if you look in your owners manual it does talk about that but still I think it's ridiculous that they don't warn you of that when you buy these cars that you need to check your oil regularly or you will blow your engine! Dawn

These engines are 1. either set up with piston, ring and cylinder wall clearances too great.or 2. The valve guide seals are of a faulty design or material and letting oil leak by.Use 15w-40 motor oil. I have an xB and have been using 15w-40 since it was new. I change every 3000-3500. The oil has never been low. Just do it one(1) time, see if oil consumption slows or stops. Toyota doesn't own the car, it's not their responsibility.

The problem is with the 20 weight oil. This is a trick the manufacturers have thought up to bump up their fleep mpg average to meet CAFE standards. Lighter weight oil gives the cars slightly better mpg due to less friction, but are they really good for the engine? I'd rather put 30 weight oil in my engine from now on.

I'm getting sick reading this forum. Is it only the 2008 that has the issues ? I just bought a 2008 Scion xb I had it two days and it seemed like the engine was vibrating only while in drive at a stoplight not in park or neutral let foot off brake it stopped. Found it to be carbon in the throttle they cleaned it out and works fine. Do all the 2008 xb use alot of oil ? I've read a few posts where it said put in heavier oil has that helped? I'm afraid to wait til 5000 miles to change the oil. My problem is due to my disabilities, back etc the scion was the only vehicle i could get in and out of with ease. Funny thing is when i checked on scion on consumers etc nothing was mentioned about any major problemsStephanie

I haven't heard about it either and I'm considering purchasing one with 95K miles. I also have a newer 2011 picked out as well. So, I would like to know, but in the first post where the guy didn't change his oil regularly, that will cause problems in ANY car and anyone should know better, just common sense. But I would like to know before I buy something I can't afford to replace and will be stuck in a 3 year car payment in.

This is my wifes car. I was driving it one day and heard a tick in the engine that I never heard before. I pulled over and checked the engine oil and it was bone dry. I would have expected the warning light (oil light) to be illuminated when the oil pressure drops below a certain point but it never did. I called in and they had me do the oil consumption test, but unfortunately I don't have the time to take 2-4 hours out of my day to do this and often forgot so it was pretty much useless.

I will never buy another scion, perhaps any toyota product again.I would understand if the vehicle was from the 70's or 80's that it might burn some oil, but never for a brand new car and never at the rate at which it burns oil. I also don't understand why the oil lamp never came on or no other indicators letting me know something was wrong.

I've come to the realization that I'll need to check the oil every couple weeks and will probably change the oil weight and maybe even install a oil pressure guage.

So far my 08 xb has had no problems when I bought it a mechanic told me to use 10-30 motor oil haveint had any oil loss I change oil every 5000 miles. I have 55000 miles no trans problems nock on wood. ">

I'm loving my 08 xb now I can't believe the problem I had was so simple and toyota couldn't figure it out. I had the vibration like some others were talking about only in drive while idling went to dealer 2x more or less said nothing wrong so have to live with it. But it was so loud sometimes i taped it but before i went back I decided to go to my own mechanic who fixed my old van for years and guess what it was the stupid hood vibrating they turned the rubber pieces and in a minute had it fixed. I sitll haven't been back there yet but i'm goign to call service one day and let them know LOL

Similar problem here. 2005 scion xb sputtering upon acceleration and not effected at high speeds if it will get to speed at all. Seems to be running rich however comes and goes and will not start now. mine has been in the shop for 2 months and they can't fix it. Did you ever find out what was wrong with yours?

I have the same problem with my scion xb 2008. 93k always being maintained at toyota now is burning oil....they said ...we do not read what people post.....my fixing estimate. aprox $1300 what would you do.i mean a family with one car 2008 do not seem middle class not for $1300 repair..that's. what we vot toyota ...we expected to put some money. on it at 200k...it's toyota but now I'm confused and worry...

I have a 2008 scion xb with 79000 miles and it burns oil. Took it to the Toyota dealer and went through an oil consumption test which determined that my car was burning about 2qt of oil every 1000 miles. I had to pay $3,580.99 to get it fixed. They said its due to carbon deposit that seized the piston rings and that allowed the oil to go through. The extended warranty did not cover it because the damage was caused by carbon deposit. Has anyone had a similar diagnosis and problem as I did. From reading everyone's post, I really hope Toyota would recall this so I can get my money back from the repairs. I've owned this car for 5 years and its really disappointing that Toyota would put crappy parts inside these their cars.

Yep shame on Toyota! I have been waiting and waiting for more people to come forward with this problem in the hopes that they would do something about it! My XB now has about 115,000 miles on it . I get the oil changed religiously after about 1500 miles and 2 to 3 weeks I have to add half to a court of oil. Then I have to check it every single day to stay on top of it and make sure it does not get too low which within a week it usually does! My car is now paid off and I'm just crossing my fingers and praying that I can keep going on like this for a while without any major issue like the one you have now had! After this experience I would never buy another Toyota product again! I went to the Scion headquarters and try to fight them on this whole thing but they said that the oil consumption was in the normal range! It says right in the owners manual these cars may burn oil! If they would have told me that when I bought it I probably would have chosen another vehicle! Very sneaky and underhanded of them! For over a year now my car sometimes shakes and sputters a little bit almost like I'm about to stall out when I am sitting at a light etc. no one seemed to know what causes that problem either maybe it is something to do with the oil burning though. Please call Scion headquarters to put in a complaint about this problem just telling Toyota is useless! Dawn

So looks like this is a BIG problem. Bought the car brand new in 9/2009 and babied this car. Oil changes every 4k, Fram Filters, Castrol GTX 5W-20 Synthetic. Now 97000 mostly highway miles and guess what? Around 90k oil light came on just 3,000 miles since last change and it was down nearly 3 quarts! Have been watching it ever since and it is burning (NOT leaking) a quart about every 1,000 miles. This came on quickly and I agree with every post; it is NOT acceptable in 2013 and with modern engines for this to happen. Poor engineering and totally a major disappointment from Toyota..that once built the indestructible 22R engines I had years ago in my Celicas. I am SO disappointed that Toyota has let this happen!

Raise Hell and call, call, call and let Scion have it! 866-707-2466 I have been a backyard mechanic for 40 years and this is BS for this engine to do this. I will research to see if maybe there is maybe a stuck EGR valve problem or somethiing obvious but something tells me I am screwed. This engine should run to at least 200k if taken care of.

I have a 2008 xb, it is using about a quart of oil every 1500, I have 56000 miles on it, (very easy driving). Called the main office and reported it, took it to the dealer, it took 6 hours and 14 minutes to change the oil and put a seal on the oil stick and bolt. They are playing with me, the service writer said it was normal to add 2 to 3 quarts of oil between changes. Right now I'm in the middle of the consumption test, but their attitude says they are going to make this difficult.